WASHINGTON, D.C.—A 17-year-old ma was killed, and an off-duty police officer was in a serious condition after suspects shot 20 people at a large gathering in southeast Washington, D.C. on Sunday, August 9.
Christopher Brown, who had a one-year-old son, was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. The injured police is still in the hospital. According to police officers, the incident happened at a cookout attended by hundreds of people at 12:20 a.m. in the 3300 block of Dubois Place.
“There were multiple shooters. After the shooting occurred, we ended up with 20 victims and at least 11 of the victims are female,” said D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham. He emphasized that the shooting was an isolated incident and that the community is really safe.
A flier of the event advertised the fifth annual “34th-n-EAT” cookout, promising free food, drinks and a “drama-free event.” Under the restriction of COVID-19 pandemic, Mayor Muriel Bowser said having a large social gathering is illegal and violates public safety.
“We know it’s summertime, people have been cooped up and they don’t have a lot of other places to go, so in some cases, there are spontaneous gatherings,” said Bowser. “There have been cookouts that have happened peacefully for years and years that are spinning out of control.”
Bowser emphasized that it’s illegal to drink and use marijuana on the streets in DC as well as have a gathering for more than 50 people.
“It’s very important that as a community we have a zero-tolerance for this activity, and that we support the Metropolitan Police Department when they’re going to make very difficult decisions to break up these events,” said Bowser.
